Dr. Case’s research uses social justice and systems theory lenses to investigate the nonacademic, ecological, and sociopolitical factors that affect youth development, especially educational preparation. In particular, Dr. Case studies how families, schools, and community-based organizations can work together to prepare lower-income students and students of color for higher education and how colleges and universities can support these same students after they have matriculated. Her current projects especially focus on the ways community-based youth development programs and school-community-university partnerships can be leveraged to fill gaps in youth preparation.

Additional research interests: best practices and pedagogical innovations in graduate training in counseling and counseling psychology; multicultural training.

Sommerfeld, A.K., Lindwall, J., & Knudtson, L. (2015). Social justice advocacy across contexts: How counselors and psychologists can integrate advocacy into research and practice. The Practitioner Scholar: Journal of Counseling and Professional Psychology, 4, 90-102.

Sommerfeld, A.K. (2014). Social class as a relevant cultural variable for middle class women: Implications for psychology training and practice. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 45(1), 67-75.